India-Italy Special Strategic Partnership: Rome Visit Outcomes
Why in the news
Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Rome resulted in a Joint Declaration that upgrades ties to a Special Strategic Partnership. A defence industrial roadmap and a higher trade goal came with it.
Key facts
- Status: ties elevated to Special Strategic Partnership.
- Trade goal: €20 billion by 2029; the 2025 level was €14.25 billion.
- Seen as supported by the newly concluded India-EU FTA and the India-EFTA TEPA.
- Governance: a mechanism led by Foreign Ministers and a Joint Strategic Action Plan 2025-2029.
- Connectivity: commitment to IMEC, with its first Ministerial in 2026, plus a maritime transport MoU on port networks.
- Culture: 2027 named the Year of Culture and Tourism.
| Pillar | Main outcome |
|---|---|
| Institutional governance | New partnership tier; a mechanism steered by Foreign Ministers; Joint Strategic Action Plan 2025-2029 |
| Economy and critical minerals | €20 bn trade goal; MoU on recovering critical minerals from e-waste and mine tailings |
| Connectivity | Backing for IMEC; inaugural IMEC ministerial meeting due 2026; MoU on maritime transport and port networks |
| Deep-tech | INNOVIT India hub for AI, quantum, fintech, semiconductors; Indian researchers get access to Elettra Sincrotrone |
| Defence | Defence industrial roadmap spanning helicopters, naval platforms, marine armaments and EW systems; dialogue on maritime security |
| Security and financial intelligence | MoU between Guardia di Finanza and the ED; standing task force against terror financing |
| Migration and talent | Mobility arrangement for Indian nurses; headway on a Social Security Agreement; ‘ICI – Italy Calls India’ link between universities and enterprises |
| Trilateral Africa | India’s DPI paired with Italy’s Mattei Plan |
| Culture | Italy’s role in the National Maritime Heritage Complex at Lothal; 2027 Year of Culture and Tourism |
About key items
- INNOVIT India: India-based innovation hub using Italian tech-industrial expertise to speed up startups.
- Critical minerals MoU: recover rare earths and other minerals from e-waste and tailings using Italian recycling know-how, shielding India’s semiconductor and clean-tech sectors.
- Trilateral Africa: India supplies DPI (UPI-style payments, Aadhaar-style ID), Italy supplies infrastructure finance via its Mattei Plan for projects in agriculture, health and digital payments.
- NMHC, Lothal: a museum-cum-education complex at an Indus Valley port-city from around 2500 BCE; Italian input covers maritime archaeology and museum design.
Background
- IMEC: India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor unveiled at the September 2023 G20 summit in New Delhi; route India, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Israel, Europe.
- Mattei Plan: Italy’s Africa strategy named for energy industrialist Enrico Mattei, launched 2024 by PM Meloni; covers infrastructure, energy, education, health and agriculture.
- Social Security Agreement: treaty that avoids double social-security contributions and allows pension portability.
- Guardia di Finanza: Italy’s paramilitary financial police under the Ministry of Economy.
Exam angle
- Likely question: tier of the partnership, trade target and the IMEC ministerial year.
- Place tags: Elettra Sincrotrone (Trieste), Lothal (Gujarat).
- Entity tags: Guardia di Finanza, ED, Mattei Plan, INNOVIT India.